Perfect gifts for summer picnics, parties and weddings

Beautiful new additions to the Boutiko online ethical gift store include pieces from a stunning range of handmade homewares and accessories from fair trade company Mi Mariposa.

Mi Mariposa, meaning ‘my butterfly’, combines the modern unique designs of founder Katherine Thistleton-Smith with traditional hand embroidery from highland Ecuador, and Boutiko is delighted to be able to offer these fairly traded GIFTS on the site.

Beautiful and affordable, these high quality contemporary products are bright, fun and quirky and are made by women’s co-operative Nuevo Camino (New Way) in the foothills of the Imbabur volcano, who earn a living wage preserving the local cultural traditions of embroidery.

Boutiko founder Tara Leaver explains why she picked these stunning products: “Mi Mariposa is a brand new label which offers all the very best aspects of fair trade, namely desirable goods of an extremely high quality which are both unique and affordable. Katherine personally knows the women creating these lovely items and oversees the quality of the work whilst ensuring they are paid and treated well.”

The Mi Mariposa items available from Boutiko are:

Picnic Rug 150x150cms £39.50
Machine washable, hand woven rainbow rug embroidered with the Mi Mariposa signature butterflies. Perfect for a family picnic or gift.

Napkins 45x45cm £39.50 for four
Crisp white cotton napkins delicately embroidered with a white butterfly, an ideal wedding present.

Pleated Purse Black, blue or pink £15.50
These zip up bags are ideal as a purse or makeup bag, and include a detachable tagua key ring. Tagua is grown in the Amazon and is known locally as vegetable ivory. These unusual bags are made from recycled pleated skirts traditionally worn by Cayambe indians in the Andes.

For these, and other unusual ethical gifts, visit boutiko.co.uk